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Heritage and Retro

Heritage

Lucy, Lady Houston with the Schneider Trophy pilots at Calshot, UK, in 1931 (Picture: Central Press/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

How former chorus girl who foresaw war in 1931 helped win the Battle of Britain
In the early 1930s, Lucy, Lady Houston, realised air power would be crucial to future conflicts and donated £100,000 to make the Schneider Air Race happen. The plane developed to win that race turned out to be a forerunner of the iconic Battle of Britain fighter, the Spitfire

In a hitherto unknown alternative history, Mary, Queen of Scots, was a legendary electric guitar player (Picture: Fototeca Gilardi/Getty Images)

Mary, Queen of Rock! sounds like a hoot, but are you brave enough?

The Jamaican Giant Galliwasp (Celestus occiduus) is to be returned to its native country. Picture: The Hunterian, University of Glasgow.

Giant 170-year-old lizard to be returned to Jamaica by Scottish university

Empty Jacobite train for training not used for passengers – Alastair Dalton Alastair Dalton

Father's Day in the UK takes place each June.

When is Father's Day in the UK and why do we celebrate it?

Russian president Vladimir Putin will not be invited to take part in official celebrations to mark the 80th anniversary of D-Day.

Vladimir Putin: Russian leader banned from France D-Day celebrations

Scoraig - a peninsula in the north west Highlands, is accessed by crossing Little Loch Broom and then a half hour walk on the track. Around 70 people lived there today. PIC: Contributed.

Teacher at remote school in off-grid community takes 'step back in time'

Family of Miners, Scotland, 1982, Milton Rogovin, © Center for Creative Photography, University of Arizona. Reproduced courtesy of the National Galleries of Scotland.

Miner's Strike in Scotland told by those who were there 40 years ago

Scottish football player Denis Law is hugged by a fan after Scotland beat England 3-2 at Wembley. Cr. Getty Images.

On this day 1967: 10 retro photos of Scotland's 3-2 win vs England

The Apprentice Boys of Derry takes part in the annual Relief of Derry march on August 14, 2021 in Derry, Northern Ireland. An affiliated club in Inverness plans to hold a parade on Saturday but is meeting resistance. (Photo by Charles McQuillan/Getty Images)

Apprentice Boys of Derry meet resistance ahead of Inverness parade

The UK Record Store Day event has become hugely popular even if it does mean fighting the crowds.

Record Store Day: Embrace the LP revival and head for Scotland's vinyl hotspots

Rabbie Burns: Online gallery zooms in on Scotland's national bard

Edinburgh Castle. Photo by Lisa Ferguson.

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Members of the Up Helly Aa 'Jarl Squad' parade through the streets of in Lerwick, Shetland Islands in January. The event is widely used to promote Shetland as a tourist destination. Meanwhile, budgets to manage visitors on the ground have been cut. (Photo by ANDY BUCHANAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Scottish islands call for 'fairness' as tourism budgets cut amid visitor boom

This photograph was taken in the same area of the Atlantic Ocean where the RMS Titanic would sink just 11 days later on April 15, 1912 (Picture: Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

How a Scots preacher came to be hailed the 'bravest man' on the Titanic

The site of the Burghead Fort. Doorie Hill, where the telegraph pole was placed, sits close to the houses running to the east of the site. PIC: Aberdeen University.

Pictish 999: Apology as telecoms pole appears at ancient site

How Sociable Are Dogs: 10 most and least sociable breeds of dog

Recent archaeological finds at Culloden battlefield, which shed light on the intensity of the battle, and could include a shoe buckle belonging to the Cameron clan chief wounded in the battle. Picture: National Trust for Scotland/PA Wire

Shoe buckle found from clan chief wounded in battle at Culloden

Why doesn't Scotland celebrate its food history like France and Italy?

Why doesn't Scotland celebrate its food history like France and Italy?

Puzzles

Quick CrosswordTo test and hone your word skills

SudokuThe ultimate logic-based numbers game

WordwheelPit yourself against the clock with our simple anagram game

Retro

The 1980s will be a decade remembered for many things including bold fashions and big phones. Picture: John Phillips

1980s - the decade that can't be topped and why 1988 marked a turning point
First job, first car, first shoulder pads. The Eighties are my favourite decade and I suspect I’m not alone.

Culross Palace, which dates back to the late 16th and early 17th centuries, is the burgh's finest attraction and a big draw for Outlander fans. Picture: Scott Reid

Passions: Exploring Fife's Outlander bucket list burgh that time has passed by

A decent compact disc player is the perfect way to listen to Dire Straits' 80s classic Brothers in Arms or any new album release. Picture: Scott Reid

Forget the vinyl revival, in 2024 compact discs make for sweeter, cheaper music

Caffeine & Machine's The Hill close to Stratford-upon-Avon offers plenty of outdoor seating and tonnes of parking space. Picture: Scott Reid

Petrolhead heaven: Scottish car lovers could do with a fix of Caffeine & Machine

British businessman Richard Branson poses with his pink Pontiac car outside his new Virgin Megastore, opening in Edinburgh in July 1990.

18 more photos of Edinburgh in 1990 – including opening of huge store

The Repair Shop's resident experts

Do you have a special fix for The Repair Shop?

Twinned with Mary Erskine's school for girls, Stewart's Melville was founded in 1832 and is easily one of the finest looking school buildings in Scotland.

12 photos of Edinburgh's most beautiful schools

Classic Cars

New electric conversion rules 'helping to keep classic cars on the road'

George Prentice BEM, ex Branch Standard Bearer, on Church Parade in Edinburgh

Information on mystery RAFA branch sought

John Menzies, newsagents and stationers, and Smalls department store in Princes Street July 1977.

30+ photos showing how much Edinburgh has changed

More Scottish Heritage and Retro

Explainer Story of Scotch: When was Whisky invented and where did it come from?

Exclusive Urgent investigation after rain water leak at National Gallery in Edinburgh

Exclusive Row erupts after ‘Harry Potter’ steam operator firm runs empty trains

Sarah Rankin portrait

Scottish MasterChef finalist Sarah Rankin tells us about new cookbook, Kith

People are being encouraged to join the quest to find Nessie this spring

Explainer The Loch Ness Centre calls on NASA in new search for Nessie

INDIO, CA - APRIL 13: Singer Jarvis Cocker of Pulp performs onstage during day 1 of the 2012 Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival at the Empire Polo Field on April 13, 2012 in Indio, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images for Coachella)

Forget the Eighties, the Nineties were the best decade of all - Gaby Soutar

Simon Fraser, Lord Lovat, was the Chief of Clan Fraser. He was executed on Tower Hill for his part in the Jacobite rebellion of 1745.

Explainer Simon Fraser: The last man to be beheaded in England

The 1747 letter which sets out the forfeiture of the estate of major Jacobite figure, Donald Cameron of Lochiel. PIC: Contributed.

The downfall of a Jacobite chief and a 270-year-old letter saved from decay

Fresh appeal to Culloden visitors to 'respect' battlefield ahead of anniversary

Royal Stewart Tartan has long been known as the personal tartan of Queen Elizabeth II and the royal House of Stewart. However, during the 1970s the colours gained a significant alternative meaning as the preferred colours of the UK punk scene, who were keen to diminish the image of Victorian state power it presented by tearing it up and wearing it in unconventional ways.

17 interesting facts about Scottish tartan including its legacy

Courts in Victorian Scotland did not always see the point of some new forensic evidence (Picture: Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

Birth of CSI-style forensic evidence did not go down well with some 19thC judges

Analysis For all its couthy tropes, Tartan Day is a welcome celebration

Dave Grohl and Kurt Cobain in Edinburgh.

Remembering Nirvana's impromptu Edinburgh pub gig

Visitors will be able to see parts of Balmoral Castle used by the royal family for the first time this summer. Photo: Andrew Milligan/PA Wire

King launches behind-the-scenes Balmoral Castle tours with tickets costing £100

Andy Scott on LA life and power of his giant horse heads The Kelpies

Tartan Day: The Scottish Big Five

Celebrate Tartan Day with Scotland's Big 5

The history of April Fool's in Scotland known as Hunt the Gowk Day

The Edinburgh skyline. Picture: Getty Images

The overseas owners of Scotland's land and property mapped

The crozier was found in the grave of Bishop Henry at Whithorn, an early Christian centre in Scotland

'Exquisite' bishop's crook last held 700 years ago journeys back home

A deer stalker at work in the Highlands. Work is ongoing to ease tension and division between gamekeepers and environmentalists as land management in Scotland comes under close scrutiny. PIC: Getty.

Conflict experts called in to ease tensions in countryside over future of deer